The Currency Converter

The Swiss Franc went sideways against its safe haven counterparts the U.S dollar and Japanese Yen but made gains against the weaker euro of 0.2% in London trading.

The trustee representing victims of the US financier Bernie Madoff’s fraudulent operations has increased the amount it is seeking from the Swiss bank UBS. Irving Picard filed a $2bn (£1.3bn) lawsuit against UBS in November, accusing it of lending “an aura of legitimacy” to funds run by Madoff, whose so-called Ponzi scheme led to clients losing billions of dollars. He has now outlined 26 additional counts of financial fraud and misconduct against the bank, bringing the total damages sought to $2.5bn. UBS denied the allegations, saying they are without merit. The case against HSBC rests on allegations that it failed to act on signals that should have prompted it to stop channeling funds to Madoff’s operations. HSBC and JP Morgan Chase also deny any wrongdoing.